Faberry Week
by loudmouthgeek
Summary: It's Faberry Week over on Tumblr. These are my contributions to that. A series of unrelated one-shots.
1. It's a Faberry World

**Disclaimer: I own neither Glee nor any part thereof. No money is being made off of this story and is intended only for entertainment purposes; therefore it falls within the parameters of "Fair Use"**

**A/N: So it's Faberry Week on Tumblr, and these are my contributions to that. To all of you who are following my other stories, I apologize profusely. I really am trying to get some more things written for them. I know I've been promising a sequel to Beautiful Lost Girl for some time now, but I swear I am working on it. The next chapter of You Can Do Better is almost finished, and hopefully I can find some more time to work on it after Christmas and all the retail madness that is my life subsides. For those following the Faberry Week stuff, I'm not doing all the prompts. This is Day Two, I'll have another for Day Three up in a minute, and then I've got one more that is going to cover Day Four, Six, and Seven. All unrelated one-shots.**

**Day Two: Fababies**

Quinn and Rachel Fabray-Berry, or Faberry, as the paparazzi called them, were in the upper echelon of A-list power couples. Before their 25th birthdays, they had fifteen major awards between them, Oscars, Tonys, Grammies, Emmys, Golden Globes. The garish wedding special that they let their managers talk them into was watched by over 30 million people worldwide. A small, intimate ceremony for friends, family, and Glee Clubbers was held the week before in Fiji, they managed to keep it under wraps until afterwards. They were _the_ lesbian power couple, having long since over taken Ellen and Portia.

On her 26th birthday, Rachel announced to the world that she would be taking an extended leave from the stage "in order to experience the miracle and wonder of childbirth." They spent months pouring over potential donors who bore physical resemblance to Quinn in hopes that the baby would look like both of them and finally settled on one. It took four tries at implantation before they successfully got Rachel pregnant; fortunately the couple had money to burn. Nine months of a pregnant Rachel wasn't something that Quinn was eager to experience a second time but in late May, when their son Maxwell Oliver Fabray-Berry, Max to his family and "The Fababy" to the press, was born it was all worth it. He looked like they'd hoped he would, honey blonde hair and a demure nose like Quinn with Rachel's cheekbones and big expressive brown eyes. People Magazine paid two million dollars for the first pictures of the boy, most of which was given as gifts to Kurt and Blaine and Brittany and Santana so that their friends could fulfill their dreams of having families of their own… whenever they were ready.

Shortly after Max's first birthday, the AMA approved a method of genetic manipulation that would take an egg from one woman and use the genetic material to create sperm with the same DNA sequence to implant in another woman. As soon as she heard, Rachel knew what she wanted for Christmas: Quinn pregnant with her baby. The procedure cost an ungodly fortune but they didn't care and in exchange for pimping out the service in every interview they did over the next year, Rachel managed to get the clinic to do it for Brittany and Santana at no charge. Since the process to convert sperm into an egg was proving harder to make viable, Kurt and Blaine had opted to adopt. They brought home a baby boy of their own, whom they named Rory, about two months before Quinn's due date.

When Harmony Hilla Fabray-Berry entered the world The Catholic Church called her an abomination against God. The girls were incensed that The Church would make political hay over their daughter, but it was Rachel's childhood rabbi, Elliot Greenberg who would hit back at them in an op-ed that would run first in the local Lima paper and would eventually be picked up by the New York Times. It praised the ingenuity of the human spirit over coming all obstacles, naming the scientists credited with this breakthrough specifically and closed by saying, "Harmony Hilla Fabray-Berry, her first name invokes the beauty of many voices coming together to make music, her middle name mean 'radiant light.' To anyone who would demean this beautiful little girl because of her parentage or the method by which she came to be in this world, I would remind you that God in His infinite wisdom commands us to be fruitful and multiply; He was non-specific as to how we should accomplish this, and in the end we would do well to remember the wise words of two year old Maxwell Fabray-Berry who said, 'She's my sister. I love her.'"

It was the first but certainly not the last time that Max would stick up for Harmony… The Fababies had to stick together, after all.

The Church was curiously mute when Sugar Lopez-Pierce was born five months later.


	2. Faberry Firsts

**Disclaimer: I own neither Glee nor any part thereof. No money is being made off of this story and is intended only for entertainment purposes; therefore it falls within the parameters of "Fair Use"**

**Day Three: The First Time**

**Faberry Firsts**

The first day of freshman year between third and fourth period. That was the first time Quinn saw Rachel, wearing a red beret, a black turtleneck, and pleated skirt. Despite not being remotely fashionable, Quinn thought she looked nice.

The first day of freshman year between fifth and sixth period. That was the first time Rachel saw Quinn looking beautiful and fierce in her brand new Cheerios uniform.

The first day of freshman year after school, waiting to be picked up by their respective fathers. That was the first time they looked at each other at the same time. It was also the first time they spoke to one another. The conversation was pleasant if somewhat superficial and ended far sooner than either of them would have liked, but Quinn couldn't keep her father waiting.

The second day of freshman year. That was the first time they had lunch together. It was also their first real conversation. It was the first time Rachel had thought that she'd made a great new friend. She wouldn't… couldn't admit it then but Quinn thought something different about the tiny brunette, and that was a first, too.

The third day of freshman year during lunch. That was the first time Quinn heard Rachel sing. It was beautiful of course and somewhere in the middle of it, for the first time Quinn begins to daydream about having a future with Rachel, kissing her, marrying her, making babies with her. A minute later she snaps out of it and reminds herself that being _that way_ is a sin.

The night after the third day of freshman year. That was the first night that Quinn prayed for God to take away her impure thoughts and desires.

The fourth day of freshman year after first period. That was the first time someone threw a slushie in Rachel's face. Five minutes later in the second floor bathroom Rachel gave herself her first shower in the sink while in the first floor bathroom Quinn threw up for the first time.

Three months into freshman year. That was when Rachel received her hateful nickname, RuPaul.

Five months into freshman year. That was when Rachel got her first mixed signal from Quinn when the girl who had been so mean to her for months caught her in an empty hallway and said "Happy Hanukkah." It was the first time someone outside her family remembered that Rachel was Jewish. It was the first time Quinn had ever defied anyone's expectations. It was also the first time Rachel had hoped that Quinn was going to come around. It wasn't the first time or the last that Rachel would get her hopes up for nothing.

Three weeks into sophomore year. That's the first time the fledgling New Directions perform a really good group number "Don't Stop Belivin'" and when Quinn, watching from the back of the auditorium, sees the way Rachel looks at Finn, it's the first time she's consumed with jealousy. Realization as to who she was jealous of in that scenario combined with alcohol leads Quinn's First Time.

Two months into sophomore year. That's when Rachel tells Quinn that despite everything she doesn't hate her. It's the first time Quinn's at a loss for words.

Three months into sophomore year. That's when Rachel gives her underwear to Jacob Ben Israel to buy his silence about Quinn's pregnancy. It's the first time _anyone_ has ever done _anything_ to protect Quinn.

Days before Sectionals sophomore year. Finn finds out about the baby, things happen as a result, and later Quinn is sitting alone on a bench and it's the first time Quinn thinks… no, the first time she knows that her life is completely out of her control. Then Rachel apologizes to her and Quinn doesn't even know which way is up anymore. She was so set to hate her based on this and lay her stupid feelings to rest once and for all but she just wants to kiss her instead. It's not the first time she's had that impulse but it is the first time she actually wants to _act_ on it.

Days after Sectionals junior year. That's the first time Quinn and Rachel hold hands. Mercedes and Tina are singing "Dog Days Are Over" and everyone is dancing and having fun, and it just sort of happens, Quinn, not really thinking about what she's doing, takes Rachel's hand and Rachel doesn't stop her. They hold hands through the remainder of the song.

A couple of weeks before Regionals junior year. Miss Pillsbury is drowning in her intimacy issues and wants the Celibacy Club to sing "Afternoon Delight." Quinn and Rachel are both smart enough to know what the song is about but Rachel (almost) never turns down a chance to perform so she's in and Quinn's been wanting an excuse to sing with Rachel for a while now. It's the first time they perform together outside of Glee group numbers.

The week leading up to Regionals junior year. Quinn and Rachel get into a huge fight over Finn that sort of ends up not really being about Finn. If they were lovers or even friends it would definitely qualify as their first fight.

The week after Regionals junior year. Finn accidentally breaks Rachel's nose. Rachel contemplates getting a nose job and asks Quinn to be her nose template. It's the first time they spend time together outside of the necessities of school or Glee. Rachel suggests a song idea for them and they perform a duet together, another first.

Junior Prom Night. After Quinn slaps Rachel and apologizes for it, which contrary to popular belief is _not_ the first time she's ever apologized, Quinn unloads about her fears of the future. It _is_ the first time she's ever expressed those fears to anyone. Then Rachel tells her she's pretty like everyone does, but she continues by telling Quinn that she's "a lot more than that" and that's another first. No one's ever told her or even hinted at the idea that she could be more than just another Christian housewife.

The second day of senior year. That's when Rachel shows up under the bleachers and braves the threats of the other Skanks to tell Quinn that she misses Quinn in Glee Club and invites her back, not because of some sense of obligation like Santana had tried earlier, but because the club needed her. It was the first time Quinn had ever been needed.

The week of Sectionals senior year. That's when Quinn had it in her mind to get Shelby fired to get Beth back. Rachel talked her out of it. Afterwards, they were in the office talking like the friends that they'd slowly become and Quinn talks about the future and for the first time it's optimistic. Rachel not-so-causally says, "You're a lot better than you know." It's not the first time Rachel has tried to build Quinn up, but it's the first time Quinn really listens when she does it.

A week after Regionals senior year. That's when Rachel receives her acceptance letter from NYADA. Her fathers watch her open it and after all of the celebrating they do, Rachel's first instinct is of course to call Kurt but she doesn't want to brag to him if he's still waiting on his letter, so she calls Quinn instead and invites her over to celebrate with her. They spend hours laughing and talking and watching movies, including home movies of young Rachel, and eventually fall asleep together on the couch. It's their first sleepover.

The next day at school. That's when Finn gets upset that Rachel would rather spend the night with Quinn than tell him about her good news and starts yelling in the middle of the hall. Rachel knows that he's just upset that this means their relationship is near its end, but she also knows Finn has a tendency to get angry and sometimes even violent when he upset and she suddenly feels trapped against her locker with him towering over her until Quinn and Kurt intervene to defuse the situation. Finn calms down but breaks up with Rachel anyway. It's certainly not the first time he's done that, but it's the first time that Rachel isn't really _that_ upset about it. It turns out that Kurt also got into NYADA and Rachel, Kurt, Quinn, and Mercedes go out to celebrate that night.

Four days later. That's when Quinn gets her acceptance letter to Yale along with a full ride scholarship. She wasn't going to have to beg her sorry excuse for a father for money for school. "I'm not a Lima Loser," she says aloud to an empty house. It's the first time she's ever been certain of that fact. She literally jumps for joy and immediately calls Rachel even before her mother. It was the first time that Quinn had ever reached out to anyone.

Two weeks later. That's when Puck asks Quinn to Prom. She doesn't know what to say. She's over status and isn't running for Prom Queen this year, but she does still want to go. Without any other prospective dates she's inclined to say yes, but she can't help feeling like going with Puck would feel like moving backwards and she's about moving forward now. Before she gives him an answer she talks to Rachel and asks if she wants to go to Prom with her. She had meant to say "as friends" but the words never actually come out of her mouth. Surprisingly, Rachel says yes anyway. It's the first time Quinn's ever asked anyone out. It's the first time anyone's ever asked Rachel to a dance.

A week before Senior Prom. That's when word gets out in Glee that Quinn and Rachel are going to Prom together, and while Rachel calmly explains that they are just friends, Quinn panics and says that anyone in Glee that doesn't have a date is welcome to join them. Sam and Rory accept the offer. It's not Quinn's first bout of gay panic but it's the first time she recognizes it as such, and the first time she begins to contemplate the implications of it.

Senior Prom Night. Dinner before hand is actually fun. Sam's dorky sense of humor is actually kind of amusing when you stop looking at him as a prospective boyfriend and Rory's a complete sweetheart. At the dance, Puck, who apparently came stag, asks Quinn to dance often and eventually she relents. The moment they start Quinn realizes her first instincts were right. Puck is her past and she's not remotely interested in rekindling things with him, if there was ever anything to truly rekindle. Sam and Rory pull off Sam's plan to win Mercedes back and remarkably it works. It also has the added effect of convincing Sugar that she'd rather be with Rory than Artie, whom she'd come with. This left Rachel and Quinn alone together once more. They dance together for the rest of the night, fast songs and slow. Both girls fight the urge to kiss one another. By any reasonable standard it's their first date, and both girls' first with another girl.

Nationals senior year in Chicago. New Directions makes the top ten this year, and after all the groups have performed a second time, the judge starts reading off names one by one. By the time it's down to the top three and they had yet to be named, Rachel and Quinn had white knuckled grips on each other's hands and huge smiles on their faces. The third place team takes their trophy and exits and it's down to just New Directions and their perennial nemeses Vocal Adrenaline. When New Directions are announced as the National Champions there's pandemonium all around them, but Quinn and Rachel are quiet and still, locked into a death grip of a hug crying tears of joy into each other's shoulders. It's Rachel's first National Championship, and while Quinn has two for cheerleading under her belt, it's the first one for something she's actually passionate about.

Graduation Day. Quinn makes valedictorian despite her three month tumble off the deep end at the beginning of the year. It's the first time Quinn feels comfortable enough in her own skin to speak honestly about her emotional journey from pudgy, unpopular Lucy all the way up to today. She speaks of many things, most of which she leaned in Glee Club: the importance of friends and of family and of making a new family when the one you were born to isn't there for you, she speaks of the importance of creativity and the arts, and she speaks of the supreme importance of acceptance, accepting others and more importantly accepting and loving yourself. Rachel just sits teary eyed and beaming at her. It's the first time Rachel has ever been just completely proud of someone who beat her at something without even a hint of jealousy.

Graduation Night Party at Puck's. The girls are virtually inseparable all night. They share their first kiss that night… their first two actually. The _first_ first comes during a game of Spin the Bottle. Silent communication between them tells them to show off for the audience and Rachel leads them in a stage kiss meant to look like a lot more than it really is. Later, they slip away from the group into the back yard and share an un-coerced kiss that's much more tender and personal. They're both drunk, although not _that_ drunk. Neither of them talks about it afterwards.

July 10th, 2012. That's the day Rachel's leaving for New York. She got a cast as an understudy in a play at NYADA and she has to be there. Quinn helps Rachel pack and the entire time she's there she wishes that she'd talked to Rachel about graduation night so that she could kiss Rachel goodbye at the airport. She doesn't really know what her feelings are for the tiny diva but it's definitely more than just friendship. Quinn, Kurt, Mercedes, and The Berrys are all sad to see Rachel go and she's sad to leave. When Rachel's plane taxis away from the building Quinn feels truly heartbroken for the first time, and Rachel feels completely alone for the first time. The Berrys are nice enough to let Quinn sleep over in Rachel's bed.

July 27th, 2012. That was the day when the female lead in Rachel's show came down with a stomach bug and Rachel was tapped to go on in her place. It was her first time on the stage, and she was ecstatic about that, but afterwards it felt kind of hollow. Reassurances from her castmates that she had done well didn't make up for the fact that no one was waiting after to see her.

August 14th, 2012. That was when Rachel made her first trip to Yale. It was also when Quinn was due to arrive at Yale, and Rachel actually beat them there by about twenty minutes. When Quinn and Judy did arrive, Quinn was out of the car door as soon as it was stopped and ran towards Rachel who was already off and running towards her. It was like something out of a cheesy movie which made Rachel even happier. Quinn hadn't told her mother about her feelings for Rachel so she had to settle for a bone crushing hug on the sidewalk but as soon as Judy was out of the dorm room, Quinn pushed Rachel up against the wall and planted her with a blisteringly hot kiss broken only long enough for Quinn to beg Rachel to go out with her that night to which Rachel happily agreed before resuming the kiss. The girls shot apart as Judy walked back into the room. The older blonde eyed them both and said, "You're supposed to put a scarf around the doorknob when you need alone time, dears." That afternoon was Quinn's first honest conversation with her mother about her sexuality and the first time Quinn knew for sure that her mother meant it when she told Quinn she loves her. That night was Quinn and Rachel's _actual_ first date… the first of many and the beginning of so very much.


	3. Christmukkah in New York Part 1

**Disclaimer: I own neither Glee nor any part thereof. No money is being made off of this story and is intended only for entertainment purposes; therefore it falls within the parameters of "Fair Use"**

**A/N: So this one is going to be a combination of prompts for the Faberry Week. It's also going to be multi-part. I don't yet know how many chapters it's going to be but it's probably going to be at least three. This chapter fills the prompt for Day Four: Winter in New York and Day Six: Cuddling.**

**Christmakkuh in New York**

**Part One**

**December 10****th****, 2012**

As long as she lived, Rachel would never get use to how early it gets dark in the winter. Five o'clock was just a completely unreasonable time for it to already be pitch black outside. Granted, most days she didn't notice since there was enough artificial light in New York that you never really noticed. She only really took note of how dark it was on her trips to and from Yale to visit Quinn, which admittedly had become more frequent of late but so what she quite liked Quinn now and it's not like it was that long a trip, only 69.7 miles, an hour and a half with the right traffic conditions. And besides for the next three weeks she wouldn't have to drive anymore since Quinn was coming to stay with her in New York for the holidays. Rachel's fathers had always wanted to do Christmas in New York and now they had an excuse, Kurt was going home to Lima for the holidays, and Quinn really wanted to avoid doing that, so it all worked out rather perfectly. Rachel pushed a button on her steering wheel and waited for the familiar bing. "Call Quinn Fabray," she instructed her phone.

Two rings later, Quinn answered, "Yes, I'm getting packed."

"Hello to you, too, Quinn," Rachel said.

"Hello, Rachel. It's wonderful to hear from you again," Quinn said with no small amount of sarcasm evident in her voice. "And yes, I am almost done packing."

"That's good, though I should point out that you needn't pack toiletries as we have spare toothbrushes and I picked up your brand of shampoo and conditioner after the last time you stayed with us, and of course between Kurt and I there is a mountain of grooming tools and products in our bathroom."

"Oh yeah, I didn't think of that," Quinn said, "but it's already all packed now and it would be more of a pain to unpack it than just to lug it. How far out are you?"

"Just passing the Welcome to New Haven sign now," Rachel said, "so about another ten minutes, assuming I can find a parking space."

Quinn laughed, "Most of the student body fled campus yesterday as soon as their last finals were finished. You'll be able to pull up right in front of the dorm, no trouble.

Quinn was right. Rachel had no trouble pulling up curbside to find Quinn and her roommate Leah Brighton standing bundled up on either side of a small mountain of Quinn's belongings: two suitcases, two garment bags, and three rather large boxes. Rachel was rather glad that she had a sensible car with a sizable backseat since all of that stuff was definitely not going to fit in the trunk.

Rachel popped the trunk as she stepped out of the car, opting to leave it running so it would stay nice and warm inside. "Hello, Quinn. Hello, Leah," she gave each girl a brief hug in turn before continuing, "While I certainly value being prepared for most all scenarios, why do you have so much stuff? You're only staying with me for three weeks."

"Yeah," Quinn countered, "three weeks that include Hanukkah, which I _am_ celebrating with you by the way, Christmas, New Years, and your birthday."

"Miss Fashionable can't be seen in anything less than Couture," Leah teased, "even lounging around the dorm room."

"That is not true and you know it," Quinn said. Leah and Rachel smiled at each other knowing that while the part about the dorm room wasn't true, there was more than a hint of truth to the statement. Quinn had become something of a fashionista since leaving Lima. The three girls quickly loaded Quinn's things into the car.

When everything was stowed away, Leah pulled Quinn into a tight hug and said, "I'm gonna miss you girly-girl," Quinn nodded in agreement against Leah's shoulder, "Call me when you get there. It's already so dark, and they're talking about snow."

"Rachel's driving; we'll be safe," Quinn said, "That much is guaranteed. I will call you when we get there and many times after."

Leah released Quinn and pulled Rachel in and said, "You take care of my girl, you hear me? She's under your care now. If anything happens to her, I will come find you."

"And go all Lima Heights on me?" asked Rachel.

"What?" Leah asked.

"Nothing," Rachel said dismissively, shaking her head, "You just reminded me of a friend of ours from back home. You should come down for New Years. Quinn, Kurt, and I are going to Times Square. It's going to be amazing."

"Shove my way into an enormous crowd with half a billion other people in the freezing cold so that I can watch the two of you make out? Pass," Leah was completely convinced that Rachel and Quinn were in a clandestine long distance relationship and nothing either girl said would convince her otherwise. It was entirely silly of course, just because the two spent a lot of time talking on the phone and driving to see one another whenever they had a chance, and crowding together on Quinn's dorm room bed… Okay, so maybe, objectively Rachel could see where Leah was coming from, but that didn't make it true. "I'm gonna hit up a friend's, warm blankets and hot cocoa and watching the ball drop on TV. I'm gonna try to get down there with you guys next year though."

"That would be lovely. Just call me when you know for sure if you're coming. You have my number, right?" Rachel said.

"I do, you guys drive safe."

"Always, but especially since I have my 'girlfriend' in the car," Rachel said sarcastically, air quotes and all.

**December 14****th****, 2012**

"_Farwell my beauties, please do enjoy the holidays in the splendor and wonder of New York while I am condemned to two weeks of awkward family gatherings in dreary Lima, Ohio, one or all of us need to be hugely successful by this time next year so that we can fly our families out for the holidays, because honestly, once you've lived in New York for five months one should never have to go back to Ohio. I'll be back in time to ring in the New Year with you. Love, Kurt. P.S. Quinn if you get into my night cream again and don't replace it, I _will_ cut you," _Quinn read the letter they'd found on the counter of the kitchenette of Rachel and Kurt's shared apartment.

Rachel laughed. "He's so dramatic. I think either the school or the city is bringing it out in him. I honestly think he's worse than me now." She was hard at work on her holiday cookie baking. She had racks and racks piled on every available flat surface to cool while Quinn went back to her laptop hard at work on a story she'd been writing for the last month. Quinn was still a drama major, but she'd taken a creative writing class her first semester; she had most definitely been bitten by the writing bug and now she almost couldn't stop.

"I'm not so sure," Quinn said with a smile, "That's a fairly high water mark." After a couple of minutes of silence she spoke again, "He's not wrong though. I mean, I don't even live in New York, just visit far more often than a first semester freshman probably should and I love my mother to death and I miss her but if I never set foot back in Lima, Ohio, I'd be a happy, happy woman."

"Preaching to the choir," Rachel intoned, "I mean, I almost certainly will go back, to see my fathers, to check up on the Glee Club, but New York is my home now. In a strange way, I think it always was even though I'd never been here until about eighteen months ago."

Quinn smiled and looked up and over towards Rachel who was still steady working on her cookies. "That's kind of wild to think about, isn't it?"

"What's that?" Rachel asked without looking up.

"How much life has changed for us in such a short time. Eighteen months ago when we came here for Nationals, you and I were not friends, and don't argue with me on that," Quinn sensed the coming protest, "You were _friendly_ towards me, but we weren't _friends_, not like we are now and not even like we were this time last year. If after Nationals someone had said to me that in a year and a half Rachel Berry was going to be my best friend and that we'd be living together during the holidays, I probably would have just punched them in the face."

"Well, while as you well know, I abhor physical violence in all its forms, I certainly think that had someone told me at that time that I would currently not only be spending the holidays with Quinn Fabray but actually eagerly anticipating doing so, I would have insisted that I escort said person to the nearest medical facility to have them checked out for either serious head injuries, a large scale illicit substance abuse problem, or possibly both." The girls shared a laugh at this. Rachel pulled a pan of cookies out of the oven and set them on top of the stove, "I think I need a baking break. Did you have anything you wanted to do today?"

"Um, yeah," she said setting her laptop on the end table beside her, "Kind of a lot, now that I think about it. I need to get some presents in the mail or they aren't going to make it there on time. I've got a box of things to send to Beth but I wanted… this is silly, but I wanted to get her something from FAO Schwarz."

"That's not silly, Quinn," Rachel said, "That's incredibly sweet."

"I also wanted to pick something up for my mother from the Macy's on 34th Street. She's always loved that movie."

"Quinn, I had no idea you were such a sweetheart," Rachel said.

"And since it's snowing, finally, they've been calling for it every day this week, but since it's snowing I want to take my camera out and get some shots of the beauty of New York in the winter. I assume you have no problem with having your picture taken lots of times?"

"You assume correctly, Quinn. And you're right, that is a pretty full day. FAO Schwarz is on 5th Avenue and 58th Street, that's pretty much right across the street from Central Park which would be a great place to take snowy New York pictures. Oh and Macy's is on the way there."

"Yeah," Quinn said wryly, "you'd almost think I planned that or something."

"Are you making fun of me?"

"Me? Do something like that? Never!"

"Okay, now I know you're making fun of me and just for that I decline your request to take my picture in Central Park," Rachel said self-satisfied smirk.

"That's fine," Quinn said dispassionately, "I'll just take pictures of the snow and then when that student photography exhibit rolls around, your beautiful, bright smiling face won't be adorning any walls and no one will discover you and want to put you into their show."

Rachel squeaked and said, "Quinn you didn't tell me about any photography exhibit!"

"That's because I haven't gotten in yet," she explained. "I need the photographs to get into the exhibit and I need you to admit that although you have acting chops to spare, you've never been a model and agree not to be a diva when we get there. I'll accept your input, but I'm the photographer."

"Are you a photographer, an actress, or a writer?" Rachel asked.

"Are you an actress, a dancer, or a singer?" Quinn countered.

"I'm all three because I'm going to be a musical theater star."

"Okay, fair enough," said Quinn. "I'm pursing things that I am passionate about. I don't _know _what I want to do with my life. Last year when I told you I love performing, I meant just that. I didn't say I had myself locked into being an actress, just that I love doing it. I also love writing and taking pictures. I don't know if I'm good enough at any of them to make a living doing them. That is why I'm trying all these different things."

"Very well, how does the photographer wish me to be dressed?"

"Do you still have that multicolor striped coat you wore when we came here for Nationals?"

"Of course," Rachel said.

"Good, I think all that color will really stand out against the snow. Wear the red tights, too if you've still got those. If not I guess we could pick some up at Macy's, but leave out the white hat. In fact, don't wear a hat at all, at least not during the shoot. You can wear one until then if you want."

"Quinn, at what point did _you_ become the one that speaks in paragraph form?"

"Shush you."

"What about this?" Rachel asked holding her arms above her head.

Quinn shook her head, "The pictures aren't supposed to look posed."

"But I'm posing for them."

"Yes, honey, I'm aware of that," Quinn said, "but the point is to make the poses look as natural as possible, and when have you ever held your arms like that in real life?" All things considered they'd made pretty good time on their shopping plans. Quinn picked up a beautiful scarf for Judy at Macy's and attached a note explaining where it was from. At FAO Schwarz Quinn picked up a brown stuffed bunny with big floppy ears which she had been assured was Beth would love. The whole lot of gifts had been dropped off at a nearby UPS, and they had retreated to the park to have fun and play with Quinn's camera. They'd taken several dozen pictures already, several of them really good the girls thought, but Quinn was still having a hard time trying break Rachel of the idea of posing for the camera.

"Never, I suppose," Rachel conceded, "It would appear that you're right. I have no idea how to be a model. What should I do?"

"What would you do if the camera wasn't here?"

"Go home. It is snowing out after all."

"Okay," Quinn said trying to remain patient, "then hypothetically, if you were the type of person to play in the snow, while it was coming down, what would you do if the camera wasn't here? You're an actress, right? Act!"

Rachel fell silent for a moment, presumably getting into character. She looked back up at Quinn with a familiar smile on her face and a bounce in her step. It wasn't Rachel's smile though. "Hey, Q," Rachel never called her Q, "Isn't all this snow awesome? It's _sooooo_ pretty." Rachel's impression of Brittany was pretty spot on. Rachel grabbed a handful of white flakes and flung them in the air. They caught on the breeze and blew right towards Quinn and the camera. The resulting pictures where Rachel's coat and dark hair are just visible through the haze were beautiful.

So focused on the display on her camera was Quinn that she didn't see the snowball flying at her until only a fraction of a second before it impacted her abdomen. She looked up to see Rachel wearing a smug self-satisfied grin that was more reminiscent of Santana than anything Brittany ever wore. Another great picture came when Rachel was suddenly pelted with a snowball from a nearby group of kids looking to be in the 10-15 range. "Interlopers!" Rachel bellowed fiercely, but still smiling. Scooping up another handful of snow she said, "Let me show you how we do it in Lima Heights!" With that, she unleashed the return salvo in the Great Central Park Snow War of 2012. Rachel and the kids flung snow at one another for the next twenty minutes, Quinn's camera snapping away the whole time, until a gaggle of mothers came over to her.

"Is your friend okay in there?" asked a tall African American woman.

"Honestly," Quinn said smiling, "I think she's having the time of her life. I don't think she ever got to do this as a kid."

"No snow where she grew up?"

"No friends," Quinn corrected with a stab of guilt in her voice.

"Really? That's hard to imagine. She seems like a very fun loving girl."

The snowball fight continued for another ten minutes before the various mothers called children away. Sharron, the woman Quinn spoke with, left her an e-mail address to send her pictures of the fight. When the last of the kids were gone, Rachel stood trying to fluff her matted bangs and shakes the snow out of her hair. "I think we failed to adequately plan this. We should have bought a battery powered blow dryer. My hair is soaked and I look a mess." Quinn just snapped a picture of her. "Stop that. I look terrible."

"I didn't fail to plan for anything, Rachel. The pictures are supposed to look natural, so naturally after a snowball fight your hair is going to wet and messy." She snapped another picture. "And you look beautiful as always." Rachel raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You _do_."

"While I remain skeptical, I defer to your judgment since you are the photographer and also because I have no way of seeing myself at the moment."

Quinn took another series of pictures, mostly focusing on Rachel's face, head, and hair and the results of her physical exertion: red cheeks and nose, matted, messy hair, and chapped lips. "So it's getting late," Quinn observed about half an hour later, "It's going to be getting dark soon and you're all wet. We should probably get back home soon."

"Before we do..." Rachel trailed off.

"Yes?"

"There's an undisturbed patch of snow over there. Come make snow angels with me," Rachel said smiling brightly and tugging on Quinn's hand.

"You're such a dork," Quinn replied. Rachel stuck out her lower lip in fake pout. "Fortunately for you, you're a cute dork." Quinn packed her camera away quickly and both girls lay down in the snow drift. "Santana would never have said interlopers," Quinn said, "It made your performance feel inauthentic," she teased.

"Only if you assume that I was going for an imitation of Santana. Actually I was attempting an amalgam of her and Brittany and she had a tendency to break out words that no one would give her credit for know. Essentially I cast myself as their daughter spending some time in the park with her Auntie Q." Quinn laughed at the thought of tiny Latina girl who acted like Brittany or a little fair skinned girl with Santana's mountain of attitude. Snow angels sufficiently made, the girl were just lying there on the ground looking up at rapidly darkening sky. Rachel walked her left hand over to Quinn's and took it in hers. "This has been most fun I've had in a long time. Thank you for suggesting it. And for that matter thank you spending the holidays with me. I'm certain I'd have been bored in Lima and I probably would have been lonely here by myself."

"For the trip to the park, you're welcome. For staying with you, I think we're going each other a favor keeping each other entertained and out of Ohio."

"While today was fun, I fear I may never be warm again," Rachel said. The girls had both taken obscenely long hot showers after they'd gotten home and had a hot soup for dinner and vegan hot chocolate after and were currently in Rachel's Queen sized bed under two blankets. "I fear that I may have contracted hypothermia."

Quinn scoffed, "You don't have hypothermia, you're just a drama queen, and if you're so cold why are you way over there?"

"What do you mean?"

"You're practically on the edge of your bed," Quinn observed, "There's almost four feet of empty space between us. If you're that cold, get over here and cuddle with me for warmth. That is the treatment for hypothermia, after all."

Rachel inched herself towards Quinn and said, "I didn't want to assume. I didn't wish to invade your personal space without invitation."

Quinn wrapped one arm around the other girl's waist and the other underneath her and across her shoulders pulling them flush together. "You're such a dork, Rach," Quinn said into the brunette hair her face was buried in, "All the times you came to visit me at Yale we shared a freaking twin sized bed. I'm quite use to you being in my personal space. I kinda like it. Only with you could I be the big spoon."

Though Quinn couldn't see it, Rachel smiled and replied, "I like it too, even if you are kind of spoiling it by turning it into a short joke."


	4. Christmukkah in New York Part 2

**Disclaimer: I own neither Glee nor any part thereof. No money is being made off of this story and is intended only for entertainment purposes; therefore it falls within the parameters of "Fair Use"**

**A/N: I hope everyone had a wonderful, safe and happy holiday season, which ever holiday you celebrate. This chapter is a sequel to the last one. There's not much in the way of connection to any of the prompts from Faberry Week aside from some more cuddling. Sorry it's late, but I work in retail and I have a huge family so the holidays are very busy and very exhausting for me. I know these are the wrong dates for Hanukkah next year but for the story I wanted Hanukkah to flow into Christmas**

**WARNING: There are references to recreational drug use here. If you are offended by this then I suggest you not read.**

**Christmakkuh in New York Part 2**

**December 16****th****, 2012**

"So tonight is the first night of Hanukkah?" Quinn asked. It had been a long exhausting day. Rachel's great cookie making endeavor had finished just before noon and the girls had spent the afternoon delivering literally thousands of cookies to various homeless shelters, orphanages, and hospitals. Their good deed for the holiday season now completed the girls were now crashed out on the couch cuddled up together once again. It had become the standard for them for the last couple of days when neither was busy with something else.

"That is correct," Rachel said with a smile, "I see you've done your research."

"I learned from the best. So tell me about Hanukkah," Quinn said.

Rachel's face lit up at Quinn's request. She looked up at the girl sitting behind her and said with great enthusiasm, "What would you like to know?"

"Well, I mean, I lived with Puck through one Hanukkah so I know about lighting the menorah and the dreidels and latkes, but they never really explained anything to me about what the significance of any of it or what Hanukkah is a celebration of. To be fair, at the time, I probably wouldn't have listened anyway, but now I'm curious. So start with the basics, in the Christian tradition Christmas is the celebration of Jesus' birth. What is Hanukkah the celebration of?"

"The condensed version of the story is that in the second century BCE, the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem was seized by Syrian-Greeks and turned into a temple for the worship of the Greek gods, mostly Zeus. They controlled the Temple for three years before it was retaken by a group of Jews known as the Maccabees. When they had driven their enemies out, they found the temple defiled by the Greek worship rituals, most notably the sacrificing of swine. In order to purify the Temple once more they sought to burn ritual oil for eight nights, but they only had enough oil for one night. They lit the oil anyway and it burned for eight straight days despite it being not nearly enough to do so. This is the Hanukkah miracle and in honor of that we light the menorah."

"Okay, so what about…?"

Half an hour later, Quinn knew more about Hanukkah that she would have ever even thought to ask: dreidel games and latke recipes and songs. It occurred to her then that though she'd known Rachel for years and had come to know her rather well over the last year, this side of her was something she'd never seen out of the girl. Rachel was seriously devout in her Judaism.

The girls had the curtains in the front windows pulled back so they could watch the progress of the setting sun still lounging comfortably together on the couch Quinn absently played Rachel's long silky hair. "So I never really realized how much your religion means to you."

"It's not something that I share with everyone," she replied, "To me faith is an intensely personal thing, a commitment between myself and God. It's not really anyone else's business... or at least no one except for those I wish to share it with. I have no desire to convert the world. That isn't God's path for me, so I keep it mostly to myself." Rachel looked up at Quinn and said, "What's funny?"

Quinn hadn't even realized that she was laughing until she mentioned it. "Um, I don't know, I guess it just seems like such an alien concept, Rachel Berry keeps things something to herself. The girl who asked everyone in creation whether or not she should have sex… twice has a private side."

"I most certainly did not ask everyone in creation. I asked the girls of Glee Club because you were my friends, or at least the closest thing I had to friends, and I needed advice. I don't need advice about my religion and if I do, I'll consult a rabbi. I ask for help from those that are best suited to advise me. It just so happens that in lieu of having a mother, on the matter of losing my virginity the best suited were a group of teenage girls," Rachel explained. "The idea that I have no private side is sort of a well cultivated misconception."

"Meaning you over share so that people don't go looking for the things you want to keep to yourself?"

"Exactly," Rachel said.

"Makes sense, I guess. Certainly a better way of dealing with things than being a horrible ice bitch to everyone." Quinn contemplated this new facet of her friend for a couple of minutes. "So is that why you are less verbose with me than you have been in years past?"

"That is entirely possible," she said, "I admit I hadn't really considered it or even noticed that I had become so, but that would seem logical. I tell you the things I ordinarily keep private so it stands to reason that I don't need the walls to keep you out."

Quinn took Rachel's hand in hers and said, "I'm really glad I can be that person to you, Rach. I'm glad that you can trust me with those sorts of things, especially considering all of our history. I'm also glad that you're comfortable enough to let me do this." She held their joined hands aloft.

"It's nice," Rachel said, "I like feeling connected to another person and your hands are the right size. Finn and Jesse's hands were so much bigger than mine, my fathers' too. I always felt like my hands were being engulfed by theirs. Yours and mine feel much more like a joining of equals. It would also seem that I'm something of a cuddler. I find I quite like being held by someone… and if Leah were privy to this conversation we wouldn't be doing anything to disabuse her of her notion of you and me."

"Heh, yeah, I guess you're right," Quinn observed. "I've kind of given up trying to convince her we're not together."

"Really?" asked Rachel, "Why?"

"I don't know," Quinn shrugged, "because it doesn't really seem to be worth the effort. She's pretty set on believing it and there's not really anything we could do to _prove_ to her that we aren't together, short of us spending less time together which I don't want to do. I'm not seeing anyone else so it's not like a rumor is going to get around and cause problems for me, nor am I really looking for anyone that it might cause problems for in the future. I've got plenty on my plate right now anyway with all of my artistic endeavors, so I'm happy just being with myself right now. If I need companionship here and there I've got you and Leah and Kurt all willing to fulfill that need. So if my bored roommate needs or just _wants_ to imagine us in this long distance romance… I could think of much _worse_ people to be linked to than you."

"Awww," Rachel said as she squeezed Quinn's hands, "Aren't you just the sweetest _girlfriend _ever?" Quinn laughed. She loved how playful Rachel could be with her now. So few people got to see that side of her, she was glad that she was one of the few who did. The girls sat in silence for the next few minutes as the last sliver of daylight disappeared below the horizon. "Happy Hanukkah, Quinn."

"Happy Hanukkah, Rachel."

Rachel let go of Quinn's hand and disentangled herself from the blonde girl, stood up from the couch, and made her way over the small table in the window by the door currently adorned with Rachel's empty menorah. Quinn followed her and watched Rachel open the drawer in the table retrieving a pair of white candles and a box of matches. "Many Hebrew traditions are what we would considered backwards," Rachel said. "In most Romanized cultures doing things left-to-right is the standard, but when reading Hebrew one reads right-to-left. It's the same with lighting the menorah," she said placing one candle in the far right holder. "This candle will be lit and we'll use it to light the other candles… or the other candle in tonight's case. This candle is called the shamash, but before we light them there are three blessings to be recited. When I'm done, you light the shamash and I'll light the candle."

"Okay," Quinn said trying to absorb all the information that was being thrown at her in rapid succession.

"My dad will insist on saying them in Hebrew since he's fluent but I say them in English because I don't trust my diction of a language that I do not know," Rachel closed her eyes and began to recite from memory, "Blessed are You, O Lord Our God, Ruler of the Universe, Who has sanctified us with Your commandments and commanded us to kindle the lights of Hanukkah. Blessed are You, O Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, Who made miracles for our forefathers in those days at this time. Blessed are You, O Lord Our God, Ruler of the Universe, Who has kept us alive, sustained us and brought us to this season." Rachel nodded to Quinn who quickly slid open the box of matches, pulled one out, and struck it. She lit the candle in Rachel's hand and she tipped in over sideways to light the candle in the menorah. She then placed the shamash in the raised center position.

"So do you leave them burning all night?" asked Quinn.

"Until they snuff themselves out or until I go to bed," Rachel said, "I'm reasonably certain that God does not wish me to risk a house fire just in the name of saying thank you for the many miracles in this world."

"So is it present time?" Quinn asked with a smile. Rachel returned the smile even more brightly which Quinn took to mean yes so she went to the box she had left sitting by the door which contained an assortment of wrapped presents and pulled out two the same size. When she'd made her way back to the couch Rachel had three boxes sitting in her lap. "I've got one for you and one for your dads," Quinn said.

"I've got one for you and one for each of us from my dads." The girls quickly exchanged gifts. Quinn got a knit scarf from Rachel and leather bound journal from Rachel's dads. Rachel got a pair of woolen gloves from her fathers and picture of Quinn, Kurt, Leah, and her from the Yale Halloween party they'd all attended in a silver picture frame from Quinn. "This is lovely, Quinn. Thank you."

"Thank you for being my Hanukkah tutor."

**December 18****th****, 2012**

Quinn smiled at the still sleeping form of Rachel and her massive case of bed head curled up in roughly the same position she had left her half an hour ago. In the intervening time Quinn had placed an order and had received delivery, made coffee, pancakes, and Rachel's weird vegan bacon. She placed it all on a serving tray along with one of the red velvet cupcakes she'd had delivered. Which brought her back to standing over a sleeping Rachel moments before her alarm clock was due to go off.

Soft beeping started rang out through the room for only about twenty seconds before a suddenly wide eyed Rachel turned it off. "Quinn, why are you standing over me like a creepy person?"

Rachel's ability to go from deep asleep to wide awake at a second's notice was nothing short of astounding. Even after having seen it a dozen or so times it was still surprising to Quinn and that would be why she was standing over Rachel like a creepy person. Momentarily, Quinn snapped out of it. "Happy Birthday, Rachel," she said setting the tray on the birthday girl's lap.

"Quinn this looks amazing," Rachel said in complete surprise. "My fathers always made me pancakes for breakfast on my birthday."

"Yeah, you've mentioned that before, and I thought you might like it if I did it for you this year. I mean, I'm not a _great_ cook but I can pull off pancakes pretty well."

"A…and all of this is vegan?" Rachel asked looking hard at the cupcake with the birthday candle sticking out of it.

Quinn had settled down onto the foot of the bed after Rachel had sat up to eat. She looked up at the girl with a skeptical eyebrow hiked. "You know, Rachel, a year ago that would have been a valid question, but now you're just hurting my feelings. I remember that your dads make you pancakes for breakfast on your birthday but I forget that you're vegan?"

"You're right, Quinn," Rachel said quickly, "I apologize. I know that you know me better than that. I just… aside from my fathers, I'm not use to people taking my diet into account, even Kurt sometimes still forgets."

"Well, rest assured, sweetie," Quinn said placing a reassuring hand on Rachel's lower leg, "if I bring you food, it will be 100% vegan friendly."

Rachel smiled softly and said, "Thank you Quinn. Now may I make a birthday request of you?"

"Depends on what it is."

"Come up here and help me eat some of this. This is far more than I can consume by myself."

"I think I can manage that," Quinn said as she scooted herself up to the headboard sitting next to Rachel. "I'm kind of curious what all these vegan substitutes taste like."

"Here start with a piece of bacon," Rachel offered. "But if you think you're getting any of cupcake you are positively out of your mind." She closed her eyes and blew out the candle.

"It's okay. I didn't have time to run out and they wouldn't deliver just one, so there are eleven more in the kitchen." Quinn took a bite and said, "Yeah, that's not bad. It's not as good as real bacon, but then nothing is."

"You and your bacon," Rachel rolled her eyes. She'd never admit it but Rachel actually felt horribly guilty for loving the smell of real bacon when she and Quinn had breakfast. She still refused to eat it of course, but it was tempting. "So where's my present?" Rachel asked with a smile.

"Did your dads give you your presents with breakfast?" Quinn asked as Rachel offered her a mouthful of pancakes

In between bites Rachel replied, "No, they would always take me out to dinner somewhere nice and if it was feasible to give me their gifts at the restaurant they would, otherwise it would be home waiting on me."

After Quinn had swallowed the mouthful, she replied, "Then I guess you know where your gift is."

"You're taking me out?" Rachel asked, so surprised that she forgot her manners speaking with a mouth full of food quickly clapping her hand over her mouth in embarrassment.

Quinn laughed at her and replied, "Unless you've got a better offer." Rachel, mouth still full of food still with a hand clasped over her mouth, shook her head vigorously. "Okay, good. Then in that case, dress pretty because we're going somewhere _very_ upscale."

After breakfast and a shower, Rachel spent the next few hours fielding and returning birthday phone calls from her dads, from Kurt, Mercedes, and Blaine all back in Lima, from Finn at Fort Collins where he was stationed, from Leah still in New Haven, from her Nana in Florida. Even Puck managed to find a payphone and enough change to call from wherever his band was playing that night. Quinn couldn't help but notice that this supposedly unpopular girl had a lot of people calling to tell her happy birthday. She laughed and chatted and basked in the attention that she loved so much with a giant smile on her face.

After a simple lunch Rachel had voice coaching which Quinn would have tried to Rachel into skipping just this one time since it was her birthday, but Quinn knew that Rachel actually enjoyed her voice lessons and she also didn't have anything else planned for them until that evening. While Rachel was out Quinn went over the pictures from their trip to the park to see if there was something worth presenting in a show.

Rachel arrived home around 4:30 with a box in her hands. "These were delivered today. There's no return address on them."

"Them?" Quinn asked seeing only the one package.

"Oh yes," Rachel said pulling a manila envelope from her purse and handing it to Quinn, "This came for you. Like the box it doesn't have a return address and I don't recognize the handwriting. I'm considering contacting Homeland Security. It could be anthrax or a container of sarin gas."

"That really won't be necessary. It's Leah's handwriting," Quinn remarked, "What would she be sending you? She didn't get me a present for my birthday and I'm her roommate." Rachel walked into the kitchen to locate a knife to cut the box open, as she did so, Quinn discretely opened her envelop and seeing that it contained what she expected it to she stuck it out of sight and out of mind.

Rachel produced a fairly large Tupperware dish out of the box. _"Happy Birthday, Rach. I'm sure Q has something awesome planned for her ba…"_ Rachel rolled her eyes and continued reading, _"her baby. Here's a little something to hopefully make the night more _fun_." _Rachel set the letter aside and opened the dish. "Oooh! Brownies," she said retrieving one of them from the bowl.

"Don't eat that," Quinn said very abruptly.

"Why not?" Rachel asked.

"Because of the very extreme likelihood that those brownies have pot in them, so at the very least keep them until after dinner."

"How could you possibly know that these brownies have marijuana in them? They smell no different than any other brownies," Rachel said as she smelled the bowl.

"They wouldn't, but I know my… I know Leah. Number one, they aren't frosted. Leah likes to get high but she's responsible about it. 'Unfrosted brownies have weed in them, frosted brownies do not.' It was one of the first things she ever said to me when we met. Number two, 'make the night more fun' is code for having sex. Beyond being convinced that we're dating, she's also sure that we haven't slept together yet since in all the times you've come to visit, I've never asked her to crash at a friend's. She probably thinks we're going to do it tonight. The brownies would be to loosen inhibitions and make things run smoother."

"And it doesn't have a return address…or postage," Rachel noticed, "because she didn't send it through the postal service. She hired a courier. Crafty." She put the brownie back in the bowl. "Have you ever had any of Leah's unfrosted brownies?"

Quinn nodded slightly, "A couple of times, yeah. Why?"

"What's it like?"

"It's… I don't know, it's…" Quinn shook her head and shrugged her shoulders, "I really don't know how to describe it. It's fun. With brownies you don't really get so high that you crash afterward. You eat a couple of them, you get buzzed, you spend a few of hours laughing at things that aren't necessarily funny, you go to sleep. Why, you want to try the brownies out?"

"I must admit that I am somewhat curious," Rachel said completely surprising Quinn, "Drug use is a frequent topic in many forms of performance. I may, at some point, be called upon to act as though I am high. Having gotten high at some point in my life would facilitate that. Relatively speaking, marijuana is the safest way to go about that, but I didn't want to risk trying to buy it since it is illegal and I also didn't want to smoke it and risk damage to my voice. This would seem to solve all of my problems. Would you eat them with me?"

"Are you kidding me? Getting to see Rachel Berry high? I'm pretty sure I'd pay good money to see that."

"I don't know if I want to do it tonight or not. I think I'd like to actually _remember_ my birthday," Rachel said.

"Okay," Quinn said, "No pressure."

**A/N: So basically, I hate the way the show more or less ignores Rachel's Judaism. That's why we have a prolonged trip to Hebrew School. There should be two more chapters of this.**


End file.
